Apparatus for sewing buttons



June 5, 1956 c. A. ROLFSON 7 7 APPARATUS FOR SEWING BUTTONS Filed July so, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 y J I 23 l 1 20:?L g

F 5 INVENTOR.

C'orneiz' us AEROIFS H June 5, 1956 c. A. ROLFSON APPARATUS FOR SEWING BUTTONS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 30, 1951 INVENTOR. Cornell us H. R01 fson United States Patent C) APPARATUS FOR SEWING BUTTONS Cornelius A. Rolfson, Portland, reg., assignor of onefourth to George W. Taylor and one-fourth to Richard C. Stratford, both of Portland, Oreg.

Application July 30, 1951, Serial No. 239,298

6 Claims. (Cl. 112-115) This invention relates both to the art of machine sewing a button to a piece of cloth and to an apparatus or attachment, for a conventional lock stitch sewing machine, by which said art may be practiced.

Heretofore a large and varied number of power driven button sewing machines have been proposed and a certain limited number of these have been adopted commercially. Further, an equal number of button sewing attachments have been proposed for use with the conventional home and portable type sewing machines. For purposes of classification, these machines and attachments may be said to employ one of two varying structures, capable of practicing two corresponding methods for sewing a button to a piece of cloth. With the first such classificatory structure, a floating, or laterally reciprocable, needle bar is provided and the button and cloth are anchored or otherwise secured in a fixed position beneath this needle bar. In use, the floating needle bar is caused to reciprocate vertically and to move laterally so as to enter first one and then the other eye in the button. I have found that this floating needle bar type sewing machine has found small favor and has not been generally accepted and adopted by the housewives of the United States. Accordingly, I have turned my attention to the second type of classificatory structure in which a needle bar and eyed needle are caused to reciprocate vertically in a fixed path while the button and cloth are caused to reciprocate laterally beneath the needle in interception of and in successive registration with this fixed path. Thus, the needle first enters one eye of the button, and, thereafter, the button is shifted laterally to a position where the fixed path of the needle is aligned with the other eye. After stitching this second eye, the button once more is shifted and the process continues. However, I have observed certain disadvantages which are inh ere nt in this second, commercially preferred structure also. The alleviation and elemination of such disadvantages is a prime object of the instant invention and, within my inventive scope, this alleviation is founded upon both a new method and a new structure.

Referring more particularly to those button sewing machines of the second classification whichhave been hitherto disclosed (see Mosberg, United States Patent 2,549,920 and Otto, United States Patent 1,824,564, for examples), an examination of their structure and function will reveal the disadvantages to which I refer. A majority of these prior art devices provide a smooth working surface or bed plate upon which the piece of cloth or fabric is rested and over which this cloth must slide. In connection therewith, a multieyed button is clamped in a vice, jaw, or other spring-like gripping member and held tightly against the upper surface of the cloth. Some operating mechanism then is provided by which the vice or jaw and the button and cloth are reciprocated laterally back and forth across the path of the needle. Thus, the needle is caused to reciprocate in a fixed vertical path, alternately, to enter first one and then the other eye in the button. The prime disadvantages born from the use of such a machine or attachment flow from the tight, vice-like manner in which the button is held and the manner in which the button is spaced but a limited, fixed distance above the surface of the cloth while the sewing progresses. For example, it is obvious that the needle and button movements must be correlated to a fine tolerance else the descending needle may strike either the web of the button or the outer periphery thereof. In fact, I have been witness to such incidents, and when the needle struck the web of the button, the former was shattered into hundreds of fine pieces of steel. Accordingly, those button sewing machines and attachments hitherto known have been practical only when custom machined or when produced with parts having precise tolerances. Such manufacturing limitations, as is apparent, are ill suited to the mass production, low price market still available in the United States.

Continuing with the disadvantages of prior button sewing machines and attachments, the rigid grip with which the jaw or spring biased gripping members hold the button immovable often has caused the thread to fray, chafe, or pile up in the button eye. That is to say, as the button is sewn, the needle often Will scrape against the periphery of the button eye or against the edge of the hole in the sewing machine toe plate (underneath the cloth). Further, as the sewing process continues, the thread spanning the web in the button tends to build up and partially fill the eyes. Thereafter, the descending needle often may strike the bunched threads since the paths of the needle and button are fixed relative to one another. This striking of the bunched thread often shears a sewn thread or shears the thread carried by the needle. Accordingly, one object of my invention is to eliminate these disadvantages by providing a method and apparatus for loosely, rather than tightly, holding a button while it is sewn whereby limited lateral move ment or give thereof is accommodated as the sewing process progresses.

In outline, my method contemplates a slow and measured, manual twostep tacking of the button to the cloth with a relatively loose loop of thread. This loose loop of thread serves to hold the button in position for the succeeding stitches yet the button is free, at all times, to move a limited distance laterally should the needle strike or nudge against the eye or bunched thread during such succeeding stitching. That is to say, with my inventive method, the button first is positioned manually beneath the needle and, thereafter, two vertical stitches are taken, one in each eye of the button. These two initial stitches produce a single tacking thread which spans the web of the button and loosely holds the button to the cloth. The sewing machine then may be power operated to complete attachment of the button yet, should the needle descend and strike the bunch of threads already partially filling the hole, the flexible nature of the needle and the loose attachment of the button produce a gentle nudge to one side, in sharp contrast with the shearing of the thread produced with prior art devices and methods as above described. Further, should the needle descend and strike the periphery of the eye, the button, again, will be given a gentle nudge to one 3 side and the needle will not shear nor will the thread be broken or frayed.

In further contrast with the reciprocating button type machines heretofore known, I have provided a novel manual selection means and have practiced a novel anchor or holding step by which the end of the thread holding the button to the cloth firmly is anchored and tied in place after the button is sewn. Thus, one object of my invention is to provide a sewing machine, pref erably of the lock stitch type, which can perform two functions with one attachment. In the first function, the above described tacking and cross stitching is performed whereby the button is sewn to the cloth. In the second function, the cross stitching steps are terminated and the thread is knotted and locked beneath the button and cloth by effecting a number of successive stitches through one eye only. That is to say, my invention provides an apparatus by which a preselected number of cross stitches may be effected and, thereafter,

the button automatically will be held in one position so i that a number of stitches repeatedly may be taken through one eye only. For example, I have determined that ten or eleven stitches are sufficient to hold the average button securely in place. However, if the thread is not anchored and knotted in place after these ten or eleven stitches are taken, the thread will pull loose with use and repeated washing of the fabric. To forestall this contingency, I have provided a manually selective mechanism which will, in effect count off the number of cross stitches desired, and, thereafter, will cause the needle to sew up and down in one eye of the button to lock the thread in place. Heretofore, it has been necessary for tailors and housewives either to have the thread loose or manually to tie one or more knots after pulling the loose thread through the eye in the button when the last cross stitch has been effected. This feature of my invention, then, removes the need for such a manual tying of knots and, further, prevents inadvertent loss of the button in spite of repeated washing of the fabric and use of the button.

Since all those buttons which are not purely decorative, must mate with a button hole, the button cannot and should not be sewn absolutely flat against the fabric. That is to say, a certain amount of clearance must be provided intermediate the button and fabric so the fabric surrounding the button hole can be accommodated. In the language of the art, a large majority, if not all, buttons are sewn with a stand. The stand is best defined as the thread which occupies and as the distance between the face of the fabric and the lower face of the button whereby the button is spaced from the fabric to accommodate the button hole fabric. In forming a garment, a good tailor must gauge by eye the thickness of the fabric and allow a corresponding stand to be formed while the button is sewn to the fabric. One disadvantage of those button sewing machines heretofore known is that no provision is made to vary the height of the stand in accord with the thickness of the fabric which surrounds the button hole with which the button is to mate. For example, a mans shirt button is provided with a slight stand whereas a thick fabric coat is provided with a button having a higher stand. Those machines with which 1 am familiar provide no means for varying the stand of a machine sewn button. Accordingly, they provide either a compromise thickness or distance or else the machine is made to accommodate one button or fabric type and other buttons or fabric types must be hand sewn. A further object of my invention is to provide an adjustment means, preferably of the tapered wedge type, which may be secured to the button carrier of a button sewing machine to vary the stand or the spacing of the upper surface of the fabric from the lower surface of the button while the two are machine sewn together.

The above and other desirable objects, capabilities and advantages inherent in and encompassed by my invention will become apparent from the ensuing description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figs. 1 and 2 are top and side views, respectively, showing a preferred embodiment of the button sewing attachment with which my inventive method may be practiced;

Figs. 3, 4 and 5 are detail views of the various elements of the attachment of Figs. 1 and 2 and these views better indicate the operating characteristics thereof and more particularly disclose the tapered wedge means with which the stand of a button may be preselected or adjusted;

Figs. 6 to 13, inclusive, illustrate the successive manipulative steps or operations practiced in sewing a button to a piece of cloth or fabric in accord with my inventive method, the steps following one another sequentially as the figures are numbered except that Figs. 6 and 7, 9 and 10, and 12 and 13, respectively, are correlated one with another in pairs;

Figs. 14 and 15 are enlarged detail views indicating the manner in which the button is held loosely and is nudged gently to one side when the needle strikes a bunch of sewn threads during the practice of my method; and

Fig. 16 is an enlarged detail view indicating the terminal step in the practice of my method whereby the thread is knotted repeatedly and is anchored beneath the cloth by reciprocating the needle of a lock stitch sewing machine continuously through one eye only.

In Figs. 1 to 5, inclusive, I have shown a preferred embodiment, by way of an attachment for a conventional sewing machine and for use in practicing the method of my invention. To this end, the working surface or bed 1, (shown covered by a smooth plate) the foot post 2, the needle bar 3, and the eyed needle 4 of a conventional sewing machine are shown. For reasons apparent to those skilled in the art, a lock stitch sewing machine is preferable for sewing a button to a piece of cloth. Thus, while I have not shown the bobbin and other portions of such a lock stitch machine, it will be understood, as hereinafter described, that the attachment of Figs. 1 to 5 is intended primarily for use with such a machine.

To secure the attachment to the working parts of a sewing machine, the foot (not shown) is removed from the foot post 2 and a frame member 5 is hooked about the post and screwed tightly thereto, as by the knurled screw indicated at 6 (see Fig. 1). Additionally, a collar 7 is secured to the needle bar 3 by means of a screw 8 having a projecting cylindrical surface. In cooperation with a forked follower lever 9, this screw 8 is thus made to serve two functions. Thus, the lever 9 is pivoted, as at 10, and vertical reciprocation of the needle bar 3 will cause the screw 8 and associated mechanism to turn or pivot the lever back and forth about this pivot.

Referring more particularly to Figs. 1, 2 and 3, the follower lever 9 pivotally carries a pawl 11 having a shoulder 12. Thus, the pawl 11 is pivoted at 13 and is biased, by a spring 14, into engagement with the teeth of the ratchet wheel 15. As the collar 7 rcciprocatcs with the needle bar, the forked follower lever 9 causes the pawl 11 to engage successive teeth on the ratchet wheel 15 and to rotate the latter with a stop and go motion.

Noting again the pivot point 10 on the lever 9, I prefer to define this point by means of a small screw which engages a turning axle 1'9 later to be described (best shown in Figs. 1, 2). Intermediate this screw and the outer face of the ratchet wheel 15, an adjustable finger 16 slideably is mounted and is held by the screw. This finger 16, in turn, is provided with a slot 17 which allows the finger either to be retracted within the peripheral outline of the ratchet wheel 15 or to be extended to the position shown in Fig. 2. When so extended, the end of the finger 16 will contact the shoulder 12 to lift the pawl 11 from engagement with the ratchet wheel once during each revolution thereof. When the pawl is so lifted out of engagement, of course, the ratchet wheel no' longer is rotated thereby and the follower lever 9 will, thereafter, merely reciprocate freely without turning the ratchet wheel 15.

Within the bounds of the frame member 5 (see Fig. 1), I have mounted an internally surfaced cam 18. This cam turns with the aforementioned turning axle 19 and with the ratchet 15. Thus, as the ratchet wheel 15 is turned with a successive stop and go motion, the cam 18 also is turned with a successive stop and go motion. Further, as has been shown in Fig. 3, a vertical cam follower member 20 rides Within the internal operative portion of the cam 18 where it is nudged from side to side to change the stop and go rotary motion of the cam to a back and forth reciprocal motion at the cam follower 20. It is this cam follower 20 which reciprocates an elongated button carrier 21. The button carrier 21, in turn, is pivotally mounted, as at 22, upon an adjustable portion 23 of the frame 5. Thus, I define that portion of the mechanism heretofore described as an operating means for correlating the vertical movements of the needle bar to the reciprocal, back and forth, movements of the button carrier 21.

Before proceeding to a detailed description of the method or art of machine sewing a button to a piece of cloth, two other elements of the apparatus of Figs. 1 to 5, inclusive, will be described. Firstly, Fig. 1 indicates the manner in which the turning axle 19 is journalled in and extends through the frame member 5 to terminate in a manual adjustment knob 24. This manual adjustment knob is used manually to rotate and preset the ratchet wheel 15 as desired. For example, if the finger 16 has lifted the pawl 11, the knob 24 may be rotated so as to turn the ratchet wheel 15 one notch and, thereby, to free the pawl 11 for contact with the next notch in the ratchet wheel. Thereafter, the vertical movements of the needle bar again will cause the cam follower and the button carrier 21 to reciprocate laterally until such time as the ratchet wheel 15 completes a rotation to cause the finger 16 once more to engage the shoulder 12. Thus, the adjustment knob and finger function, manually and selectively, to adjust the mechanism of Figs. 1 and 5 between a first position providing continuous horizontal reciprocation of the button carrier to a second position providing a termination of the horizontal reciprocation after a preselected number of vertical needle bar movements.

Secondly, Figs. 4 and 5, indicate a preferred construction for the tapered wedge 25 by means of which the effective thickness of the forked terminal end of the button carrier 21 may be adjusted. As will be hereinafter explained, this thickness is determinative of the stand of the button which is sewn since it is thisthickness which separates the lower face of the button from the upper face of the fabric or cloth. As is apparent from an inspection of these two figures, the wedge 25 is adjustable laterally by means of a slot 26 which cooperates with the aforementioned pivot 22 for the button carrier.

Turning now to Figs. 6 to 15, inclusive, I have therein shown a thread T which is derived from a spool or the like, and is carried by the needle 4, a button B having two eyes E, and a piece of cloth or fabric C. Additionally, as will be apparent to those familiar with this art, a second thread Sis fed up from a bobbin beneath the working surface of the lock stitch sewing machine which has been chosen for purposes of illustration. In such a sewing machine, the eyed needle 4 is reciprocable in a laterally fixed vertical path and the lower terminal end of such path is defined by the lock stitches or knots which are formed between the bobbin thread S and the main thread T. A few of these lock stitch knots are shown at 27 in Fig. 16.

In sequence, the method or art of my invention progresses as follows (after the knob 24 has preset the finger and the ratchet wheel 15):

(1) The end of the thread T is looped under the button carrier 21 and the button carrier, in turn, is lowered into engagement with the upper surface of the cloth C. This serves both to catch the end of the thread and to make the button and cloth move together thereafter.

(2) A button B then is rested loosely upon the top of the button carrier 21 so as to be substantially unrestrained and uninhibited against lateral displacement.

(3) The button B then is manually turned or rotated so that one of the eyes E therein registers with the vertical path of the needle 4 (see Fig. 7).

(4) The needle 4 then is passed slowly downwardly through the eye E and the cloth whereupon the bobbin thread S is tied thereto (see Fig. 8). It should be apparent, at this point, that, since the button B is substantially unrestrained and is not held against lateral displacement, the needle 4 must descend slowly and adjustment of the button may be necessary. Accordingly, these first preliminary steps of my method are best practiced by turning the wheel of the sewing machine slowly, by hand, while Watching the button B closely and moving it into position if required.

(5) Continuing with the sequence (see Fig. 10), the needle 4 is pulled vertically up out of the eye E and the button B is manually shifted to one side so the second eye is in vertical registration with the fixed path of the needle (this step also is best practiced by turning the wheel by hand). Thereafter, and still manually and slowly, the needle 4 is passed down through the second eye E and the cloth to cause a section of the thread T to span and catch upon the web 28 of the button B (see Fig. 11). After the succeeding section of thread is knotted with the bobbin thread S as shown in Fig. 11, the button may be said to be tacked or loosely held in place by a single loop of thread which spans the web 23. The formation of this loop and the use thereof to hold the button, as opposed to the vice-like jaws of the prior art, is an important feature of my invention.

(6) At this point, the manual, slow steps of the method are terminated and power is applied to the sewing machine to increase the speed and to cause the button carrier 21 to shift the button and cloth laterally from side to side as the needle 4 reciprocates between alternate ones of the eyes E. Thus, the eyes alternately will register with the vertical path of the needle and succeeding sections of the thread T will define cross stitches spanning the web 28 and building up a bunch of thread similarly to that indicated in Figs. 14, 15 and 16.

(7) As the terminal step of my inventive method, the lateral reciprocation of the button carrier 21 is halted, as by the engagement of the finger 16 with the shoulder 12, and the needle 4 is caused to reciprocate in only one eye E and thereby build up a series of lock stitches or knots 27. 7

As indicated in Fig. 2, the ratchet wheel 15 is provided with twelve teeth and one of these teeth is covered by the projecting end of the finger 16. Thus, many a housewife and tailor are satisfied that eleven stitches will hold a button securely in place. Accordingly, I have selected a' twelve tooth ratchet wheel for illustration and the above method is practiced after effecting a preliminary adjustment of the knob 24. This preliminary adjustment should turn the end of the timer 16 just past the shoulder 12 on the pawl 11. Thereafter, the button carrier 21 will be reciprocated laterally exactly eleven times before the finger 16 once more engages the shoulder 12 and stops the cross stitch sewing of the button. At that moment, the button B and threads T and S will have an appearance similar to that shown in Fig. 14. Thereafter, however, the button B and button carrier 21 will not reciprocate but will stand still in a position corresponding to the terminal end of one lateral throw of the button carrier. Continued operation of the sewing machine, then, merely will cause the needle 4 to reciprocate in one eye E of the button B and a series of knots such as those shown at 27 in Fig. 16 will be formed and built up. It is because of the abovedescribed function that I term the knob 24 and associated finger and pawl mechanism as a counter or manually selec tive mechanism to count off the number of cross stitches sewn, and, thereafter, to cause the needle to sew up and down in one eye of the button to lock or anchor the thread in place.

Referring now to Figs. 14 and 15, I have therein shown, somewhat diagrammatically, an important feature of my invention whereby the button 13 is allowed to move laterally a limited distance during sewing. Thus, as shown in Fig. 14 the needle 4 is descending and it has begun to strike the edge of a thread bunch which partially fills the left eye E. Because of the inherent resiliency of the needle 4 and because the button is rather loosely held by means of the cross stitch threads T and S, the button is allowed to give somewhat and it physically and gently is nudged to one side as indicated by the arrow on the button B in Fig. 15. Accordingly, the needle 4 is allowed to descend without binding, fraying, or shearing either the bunched thread or the thread T which is carried by the needle. To the best of my knowledge, no button sewing machine heretofore known can or will accomplish this function. Accordingly, no prior machine sewn button will last as long or withstand as much abuse as will the button B.

In summary, it will be seen that I have provided both a method and an apparatus for the machine sewing of a button to a piece of cloth with precision, a minimal fraying or straining of the thread, and an anchoring of the thread at the end. Further, by adjusting the tapered wedge 25 laterally upon the button carrier 21, I have provided a means for varying the stanc of a machine sewn button. Cumulatively, these provisions allow the manufacture of a sewing machine attachment and the practice of a button sewing method with apparatus which need not be made to such precise tolerances as those attachments or machines hitherto known. Thus, my apparatus and method may be fabricated at a minimal cost, all to the benefit of those tailors and housewives heretofore priced out of the button sewing machine and attachment market by the precision instruments of the prior art.

I claim:

1. In a lock stitch sewing machine having a work supporting surface, a laterally fixed and vertically reciprocable needle bar carrying a needle, a thin forked button carrier spaced vertically above said work supporting surface and mounted for reciprocal movement in a horizontal operative plane intermediate said supporting surface and needle bar, said button carrier including means for loosely receiving and resting a button thereon, said means defining the sole machine element restraining lateral movement of a button positioned thereon, operating means for correlating the vertical movements of said needle bar to the reciprocal movements of said button carrier, means for disengaging said operating means from said needle bar, said first mentioned means being manually and selectively adjustable between a first position providing continuous horizontal reciprocation of said button carrier so long as the vertical movement of said needle bar continues and a second position providing a termination of said horizontal reciprocation after a preselected number of vertical needle bar movements and while said vertical movement continues, and an adjustment means detachably joined to said button carrier slidably bearing thereon and adjustable laterally thereover to vary the spacing of the upper surface of said operating plane from said work supporting surface.

2. An attachment for a sewing machine having a work supporting surface, a power driven needle bar, and an cycd needle, said needle bar being operable to reciprocate said needle over a fixed vertical path towards and away from said surface, said attachment comprising; a button carrier operatively connected to said needle bar and mounted for reciprocable movement in a plane parallel with but spaced from said work supporting surface and transversely of said fixed vertical path, said button carrier having a relatively fiat upper face loosely to rest a button thereon unrestrained frorn'lateral movement, and operating means for correlating the reciprocable movements of said button carrier to the vertical movements of said needle bar, said operating means including a manually selectable means for halting the movements of said button carrier after a preselected number of vertical move ments of said needle bar.

3. A button sewing attachment for a sewing machine having a vertically reciprocable needle bar and a horizontally disposed work supporting surface, said attachment comprising a frame, a button supporting arm reciprocably mounted upon said frame member movable laterally across said work supporting surface between two positions, a forked button support carried by one end of said arm, the upper face of said button support being relatively flat and spaced from the work supporting surface for loosely engaging the under face of a button thereby, the under face of said button support positioned to engage material upon the work supporting surface to shift it together with the button supported upon the upper surface of said support, and means operatively joining the needle bar and the button supporting arm for converting the vertical reciprocation of the needle bar to lateral reciprocation of said button supporting arm.

4. A button sewing attachment for a sewing machine having a vertically reciprocable needle bar and a horizontally disposed work supporting surface, said attachment comprising a frame, a button supporting arm reciprocably mounted upon said frame member movable laterally across said work supporting surface between two positions, a forked button support carried by one end of said arm, the upper face of said button support being relatively flat and spaced from the work supporting surface for loosely engaging the under face of a button supported thereby, the under face of said button support positioned to engage material upon the work supporting surface to shift it together with the button supported upon the upper surface of said support, adjustable thickness means associated with said button support for adjusting, preselecting, and varying the extent of the stand of the button to be sewn, and means operatively joining the needle bar and the button supporting arm for converting the vertical reciprocation of the needle bar to lateral reciprocation of said button supporting arm.

5. A button sewing attachment for a sewing machine having a vertically reciprocable needle bar and a horizontally disposed work supporting surface, said attachment comprising a frame, a button supporting arm reciprocably mounted upon said frame member movable laterally across said work supporting surface between two positions, a forked button support carried by one end of said arm, the upper face of said button support being relatively flat and spaced from the work supporting surface loosely engaging the under face of a button supported thereby, the under face of said button support positioned to engage material upon the work supporting surface to shift it together with the button supported upon the upper surface of said support, a slidable wedge member associated with said button support for varying the spacing of the upper face of said button support from the work supporting surface, and means operatively joining the needle bar and the button supporting arm for converting the vertical reciprocation of the needle bar to lateral reciprocation of said button supporting arm.

6. In a sewing machine having a work supporting surface, a laterally fixed and vertically reciprocable needle bar carrying a needle, a forked button carrier having a relatively smooth plane upper surface adapted loosely to support but not to physically grip a button, said button carrier being spaced vertically above said work supporting surface and mounted for reciprocal movement in a horizontal operative plane intermediate said supporting surface and needle bar, and operating means for correlating the vertical movements of said needle bar to the reciprocal movements of said button carrier.

'References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 816,815 Ongley Apr. 3, 1906 

